Machine for drawing lapweld pipe.



PATENTED JAN. 7, 1908.

LA VBRNE W. NOYES.

MACHINE FOR DRAWING LAPWELD PIPE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 3. 1902.

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No. 875,728. PATBNTED JAN. 7, 1908.

- LA VERNE w. NOYES.

MAGHTNE FOR DRAWING LAPWELD PIPE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 3. 1902.

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PATENTED JAN. 7, 1,908.

LA VERNE W. NOYES.

MACHINE FOR DRAWING LAPWELD PIPE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 3, 1902.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

No. 875,728. PATENTED JAN. '7, 1908. LA VERNE W. NOYES.

MACHINE FOR DRAWING LAPWELD PIPE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 3, 1902.

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LA VERNE W. NOYES, OF CHICAGO, ILLINO IS.

MACHINE FOR DRAWING- LAPWELD PIPE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 7, 1908.

Application filed May 3,1902. Serial No. 105,762.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, LA VERNE W. NoYEs, citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county, of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Machines for Drawing Lapweld Pipe, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, forming a part of this specification.

My invention relates to a machine for drawing lapweld pipe; my object being to provide means whereby the skelp may be drawn into tubulate form and lap welded by one operation thereby greatly reducing the cost of producing pipe of this class.

Heretofore it has been the usual practice in drawing lap welded pipe to draw the skelp through a forming bell after the same has been heated to a working temperature, thereby forming the skelp into tubulate form with the edges overlapping and in an approached position. After the skelp has thus been formed into a tube like structure, it is again heated to bring the edges to a welding temperature and is thereupon passed through rolls which serve to weld the edges together and complete the tube or pipe.

It is the object of the present invention to greatly simplify the process of forming lap welded pipes of this class, and in accordance with the present invention, a forming bell is provided which is situated in front of the welding rolls, the skelp being heated to a welding temperature and then drawn first through the forming bell and then through the welding rolls whereby the skelp is formed into a lap welded pipe or tube by one opera tion.

In practicing my invention, I employ a draw bench, the end of which is adapted to travel back and forth in front of the furnace or furnaces, the draw bench carrying a suitable reciprocating buggy to which the tongs are adapted to be attached, the buggy being so constructed that the same may be passed between the welding rolls and through the forming bell to engage the end of the skelp. By this construction, I am enabled to form the skelp into a completed tube or pipe by one heating and by one mechanical operation.

I have illustrated a machine embodying my invention in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figures 1, 2 and 3 show the machine in elevation in disconnected parts; @Fig. 2

shows the valve operating levers; Figs. 4, 5 and 6 show the plan view of the machine in disconnected parts; Fig. 7 shows an enlarged elcvational view of the end of the draw bench carrying the welding rolls; Fig. 8 is a plan view thereof; Fig. 9 is a detail view of the tongs; Fig. 10 is a sectional view on line 10-1O Fig. 2; Fig. 11 is a view showing the mechanism for keeping the opposite ends of the draw bench in alinement; Fig. 12 is a view of the forming bell and welding rolls before the skclp is drawn therethrough; Fig. 13 is a similar view showing the skelp in the act of passing therethrough; Fig. 14 is a plan view showing the skelp in the act of passing through the forming bell and the rolls.

Like letters refer to like parts in the several figures.

The structural features of the draw bench proper do not in their individual capacity constitute any part of the present invention as the same constitute the subject-matter of an a )plication filed by myself and Daniel R. Scho es May 16, 1901, Serial .No. 60,527. The draw bench comprises longitudinal stringers 1, 2 form of channel bars with the flanges extending inward. These stringers are reinforced at their intermediate portions by means of the channels 3, 4 having their flanges extending outward. Upon the tops of the stringers 1, 2 brackets 5, 6 are mounted which support the angle bars 6, 7 which have their vertical flanges secured to said brackets and their horizontal flanges separated by a short distance to leave a narrow slot which serves to guide the buggy 8 to which the tongs are adapted to be attached.

Between the stringers the power mechanism for reciprocating the buggy is mounted.

This mechanism may be of any referred construction and for the purpose 0 illustration and explanation I. have illustrated the power mechanism shown in the prior application above referred to. This mechanism comprises a hydraulic cylinder 9 within which moves a piston having a piston rod 10 extending through the opposite ends of said cylinder, the piston rod at the left hand end being surrounded by a shell 11 whereby the effective area of the piston upon the left hand side is less than the effective area upon the other side. A valve chamber 12 is provided within which moves a valve for controlling the admission of the water tothe right hand end of the cylinder, the left hand end of the cylinder being connected with the source of I supply by means of the pipe 13. A handle 14 at the end of the draw bench is connected by means of a rod 15 and links 16 16 with a pivoted lever 17 connected by means of a link 18 with the piston of the valve. By means of the handle 14 the right hand end of the cylinder may be connected with the source of supply or with the exhaust to thereby effect the movement of the piston. A cross motion cylinder 19 is provided for moving the draw bench transversely and the fluid supply is controlled through the agency of valve mechanism 20 controlled by means of a handle 21 at the end of the machine. By means of this handle fluid may be admitted to either end of the cross motion cylinder to move the draw bench as desired.

Upon the opposite ends of the piston rod 10 cable carriages are provided having wheels traveling upon the inwardly extending flanges of the stringers, as more particularly set forth in the application above referred to.

These cable carriages carry the cable wheels 22 22 and 23 23, said cable wheels being carried to and fro as the piston in the main cylinder is reciprocated. At the rear end of the machine cable wheels 24 24 are provided and a cable wheel or sheave 25 is provided at the forward end of the machine. A bracket 26 is provided at the forward end of the machine which carries bearings in which are journaled the shafts 27 28, the former carrying the welding roll 29' and the latter carrying the welding roll 30. The shaft 28 is mounted in a vertically adjustable bearing, whereby the opening between the rolls may be adjusted as desired. The rolls are fixedly secured to the shafts and adjacent to the upper roll 29 is a cable sheave, 32. Looking at the cable wheels upon the right of the machine, it will be noted that the cable 33 extends from the buggy 8 around the larger wheel 24, thence around one of the wheels, 23, thence around the smaller wheel 24, thence around the other wheel 23, and the opposite end of the cable is fixedly secured to the draw bench at the point 34. Looking at the cable 35 upon the left of the machine, it will be noted that one end is connected with the buggy 8 and the cable extends around the sheave, 31, of the lower roll, thence around the sheave 32 of the upper roll, then takes a half turn around the wheel 31 of the lower roll, passes around the wheel 22, then around the wheel 25, then around the other wheel 22 and to the point 36 where the cable is fixedly attached to the draw bench. As the piston reciprocates the buggy 8 is moved-to and fro through the agency of the cables and due to the fact that the cable 35 passes around the wheels 0011- nected with the welding rolls, the welding.

rolls are rotated during the movement of the buggy. While the piston is moving to the right, the welding rolls are moving in a direction to draw the tube or pipe forward and when the buggy is moving to the left the welding rolls are rotated in the opposite direction.

Immediately in front of the welding rolls a forming bell 37 is provided having a flaring mouth and converging sides with which the end of the skelp is adapted to engage and whereby the skelp is bent into tubulate form before passing between the welding rolls. Mounted loosely upon the shaft 28 is an arm 38 carrying a transverse portion 39 upon which transverse portion is supported a rod 40 carrying upon the end a ball or welding plug, 41. When the buggy is moving to the right and the upper roll is moving in counterclockwise direction, the friction of the shaft 28 upon the bearing of the arm 38 swings the arm into position to carry the ball 41 between the rolls; when-the buggy 8 moves to the left the shaft 28 is rotated in clockwise direction and the friction of said shaft upon the bearing of arm 38 carries said arm into its upper position to move the ball 41 from between the jaw 45 to thereby grip the end of the skelp which is placed between the two jaws. hen the sleeve 48 is withdrawn, the jaw 46 is free to swing-upon its pivot and the skelp is thereby released.

The operation during the formation of the tube or pipe is illustrated in Figs: 12, 13 and 14. Fig. 12 shows the tongs extending through the opening between the Welding rolls and through the opening in the bell, the end of the tongs being shown in engagement with the skelp 49 in the furnace. The skelp having thus been grasped by the tongs the end of the tongs is attached to the buggy 8 and as thebuggy 8 moves forward the skelp is brought first into engagement with the bell 37 whereby the same is bent into tubu late form with the edges approached and is then passed between the welding rolls whereby the overlapping edges are welded together to complete the tube. The friction of the axle 38 upon the bearing of the arm 38 causes said arm to swing downward to carry the ball 41 between the welding rolls as shown in Fig. 13, and the overlapping edges of the skelp are thus forced through the annular space formed between the exterior of the ball 41 and the peripheries of the rolls. Then the buggy 8 reaches the end of its travel, and the completed tube has been removed from the machine, the buggy is returned to its initial position and during this movement the friction of the shaft 28 which is now rotating in the opposite direction carries the arm 38 upward and removes the ball 41 from between the rolls.

In order to keep the frame of the draw bench perpendicular to the track upon which it travels to and fro in .front of the furnace, 1 provide a shaft 50 which is journaled upon the frames of the carriages which support the draw bench. Upon the ends of this shaft pinions 51, 51 are mounted and these pinions engage respectively the racks 52, 52 carried on the under faces of flanges supportedupon the beams 53, By thus providing the rack with the downwardly extending teeth the clogging of the rack with dirt and debris is prevented. v

Having described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: I

1. The combination with a draw bench, of a buggy thereon, a pair of welding rolls and driving means common to both rolls and buggy for driving said rolls and buggy simultaneously and m the same direction, substantially as described.

2. The combination with a draw bench, of a buggy thereon, a pair of welding rolls and driving means common to both rolls and buggy for driving said rolls in the same direction and with the same circumferential speed as the speed of the buggy at all times, substantially as described.

3. The combination with a draw bench, of

a buggy mounted thereon, a forming bell mounted at the forward end of the bench, a pair of welding rolls mounted in the rear of the forming bell, cables for operating said buggy and said rolls in unison, in the same direction, whereby the skelp is drawn first through the bell and thence passed. through the rolls, substantially as described.

4. The combination with a pair of welding rolls, of a welding ball, and means operated by said rolls for automatically moving said welding ball away from and between said rolls.

5. The combination with a pair of pipe welding rolls, of an arm extending across the same and supported at the sides thereof, a welding ball rigidly mounted upon said. arm, and means operated by said rolls for automatically moving said ball away from and between the same.

6. The combination with a pair of pipe welding rolls, of an arm and a welding ball carried thereby, said arm being pivotally mounted and operatively connected to said rolls whereby the same may be automatically moved to carry the welding ball between and away from the rolls by the movement thereof.

7. The combination with a pair of pipe welding rolls, of a cooperating welding ball, an arm on which said ballis carried, said arm being pivotally mounted upon the shaft of one of said rolls and moved by the rotation of said shaft, substantially as described.

8. The combination with a pair of \\-'elding rolls adapted to be rotated in one direction and then in the other, a welding ball cooperating therewith, an arm upon which said ball is mounted, said arm being mounted upon the shaft of one of said rolls and frictionally engaging the same, and suitable stops to limit the movement of said arm in both directions, whereby when the rolls 1'o tate in one direction, the ball is moved into the operative position and when operated in the reverse direction the ball is withdrawn, substantially as described.

5). The combination with a pair of welding rolls and a forming bell mounted immediately in front of the same, of a welding ball, a transverse arm carrying said ball, and stops formed upon the edge of= said bell against which the said arm rests during the pipe forming operation, substantially as described.

The combination with a pair of pipe welding rolls, of a reciprocating buggy, a pair of tongs carried by the buggy and adapted to be inserted between said rolls into a furnace to seize the skelp, a welding ball to cooperate with said rolls in forming the pipe, and means for withdrawing said ball from operative position while the tongs are thus passed between the rolls, substantially as described.

'11. The combination with a pair of pipe welding rolls, of a reciprocating buggy, a pair of tongs carried by the buggy and adapte ed to be inserted between said rolls into a furnace to seize the skelp, a welding ball to cooperate with said rolls in forming the pipe, and means for automatically withdrawing said ball from operative position, while the tongs are thus passed between the rolls, substantially as described.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presence of two witnesses.

LA VERNE W. NOYES.

\Vitnesses: 

